Unionist Forum exists in name only, says PUP leader

Billy Hutchinson at a Unionist Forum meeting on the Shankill Road in 2012

The Unionist Forum, set up by the DUP and UUP over a year ago to bring unionism together, now barely exists, Billy Hutchinson has said.

The TUV and UKIP have left the forum and Billy Hutchinson said that “it seems to be in stalemate; nothing’s happening”.

One PUP representative, John Kyle, chaired the forum’s group on educational under-achievement and has a report ready to be published, something Mr Hutchinson is hopeful will happen before the elections.

He said that the forum now “exists in name only” and he believes that from the beginning it was “an attempt to sidetrack flag protesters”.

However, he denied that his party was naive to enter the forum.

“There are times in politics whenever it may not be what you want to do but it’s the right thing to do at the time to try to make it work,” he said.